Staples School of Dance

18/09/2026

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Introducing York Dance Scholars' faculty.

Sophia Hurdley - Classical Ballet Tutor at YDS.

Sophia trained at Staples School of Dance, Northern Ballet school, and York Scholars for 5 years with Louise Browne. She also holds an MA with Distinction in Choreography from Central School of Ballet.

She joined Sir Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures in 2002 where she has performed principal roles in numerous productions for over 20 years.

She is Course Lead on their Cygnet School and facilitates numerous projects on their outreach work.

Her West End credits include Joseph, Phantom, Pyjama Game, Happy Prince.

12/09/2026

Honestly, I’ve been putting this post off for a while… I think I’m in denial 😭💔

We would like to wish our 5 gorgeous leavers the biggest good luck as they begin their next chapters. Some have already started their new journeys, some are on their way as we speak, and some will be leaving us very soon 🥹

We are SO incredibly proud of each and every one of you. Watching you grow, develop and become the amazing young people you are today has been such a privilege. You have each brought something so special to SDA, and you will be missed more than you know 💜

We know you are all going to be incredible in whatever comes next. Believe in yourselves, grab every opportunity, keep doing what you love and never forget how far you’ve come ✨

Once an SDA dancer, always an SDA dancer. 💜

Good luck my superstars! We are so, so proud of you! 🥹🫶🏼

05/09/2026

Today is Mr Toby’s LAST day at work before he heads off to BIRD 😭💜

Oh, Mr Toby… you are going to be missed by EVERYONE! There isn’t a single child in this school that you haven’t impacted, inspired or made smile 🥹

You have been such a huge part of SDA, and watching you grow from a student into such a brilliant role model has been so special. You have given so much of your time, energy and heart to our students, and I know they will never forget you.

We couldn’t be prouder of you and everything you are about to achieve.

Thank you for everything, Mr Toby 💜

23/08/2026

✨ SEPTEMBER TRIALS! ✨

We apologise for any unanswered enquiries over the past few weeks while we’ve been enjoying our annual summer break! ☀️

We’ve worked our way through all the messages we could find today and have replied to everyone we can💜

If you sent us a message and haven’t heard back from us, please do reach out again, we’d hate for your enquiry to have been missed!

As we head into our new term, we’re welcoming new students and offering FREE TRIALS across our classes! ✨

If you’ve been thinking about joining SDA, now is the perfect time to come along, have a go and see what you think! 🩰

📩 Drop us a message to find out more and book your September trial!

We can’t wait to welcome lots of new faces to SDA! 💜

17/08/2026

ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE EXAM RESULTS ✨

Last term we had three exam sessions.. RAD Major Ballet exams, RAD Graded Ballet exams, and ISTD Modern & Tap exams ✨

After receiving all of the results, we are SO delighted to say just how incredibly well everyone has done! Every single student has received fabulous marks and honestly we couldn’t be prouder 💪🏼

What an incredible year it has been, and these results are a true reflection of how hard you have all worked 🤩

A HUGE well done to every single student who took an exam. You should all be incredibly proud of yourselves! 💜

16/08/2026

Jumping on the trend 💜

Such a privilege to have the job we do, watching these kids build confidence, make friends and just love what they are doing 💜

Forever proud of our dance family ✨

15/08/2026

Excited to start our HAF program for summer 2026 next week 💜

Book now! https://eequ.org/book/musical-theatre-fun-holiday-club-with-sda-13538

11/08/2026

A massive congratulations to these four gorgeous dancers for gaining places with Ballet Britain Leeds Associates and their performance program, Yorkshire Theatre Ballet , which will be staging ‘Cinderella’ next Spring.

Theo - Ballet Britain Leeds Associates for his 2nd year

Rose - Ballet Britain Leeds Associates for her 2nd year and 1st year on the Yorkshire Theatre Ballet performance program.

Caia - Ballet Britain Leeds Associates and Yorkshire Theatre Ballet for her 2nd year in both programs.

Maddie - Ballet Britain Leeds Associates for her 1st year.

So proud of you all for working hard and showing dedication for dance outside of our studio 💜 ⭐️

05/08/2026

Please help me congratulate our incredible Miss Gracie! ⭐️

While we were all busy performing at Lincoln Festival last week, Miss Gracie was working incredibly hard taking her DDE Modern and Tap teaching examinations ✨

We’re so proud to share that she has passed both with fantastic marks! What an amazing achievement 🤩

At SDA, we truly believe that learning never stops. We’re so proud to have teachers who continue to develop their knowledge and skills to give our students the very best 💜

Congratulations Miss Gracie 🥂

04/08/2026

A very sad day for the SDA family 💜

Today, our gorgeous girl Audrey flew off to begin her exciting new adventure in Australia 🇦🇺

Audrey, we can’t even begin to explain how much you’ll be missed by your teachers, your friends, and everyone at SDA. Thank you for being such a special part of our dance school 🥰

Remember, once you’re part of the SDA family, you’ll always be part of the SDA family 💜

Keep in touch, gorgeous girl. Don’t forget we’re always at the end of a zoom call! We can’t wait to follow your journey, and we know you’re going to achieve amazing things ⭐️

Good luck, Audrey. Australia is soooo lucky to have you! ✨🇦🇺